Allah Taãla says in the Noble Qurãn, 'You are the best of nations sent to man. You command good and forbid evil and you believe in Allah'. (Aali Imraan).
Allah Taãla states that one reason for this Ummah being titled as the best of Ummah, is the practice of commanding good and preventing evil'.
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Thursday, January 31, 2013

1.A
Sunnat Nikah is that which is simple, wherein there are no formalities,
nor are there any diputes pertaining to the dowry etc. (Mishkaat)

2.It
is Sunnat to seek a pious and righteous person for marriage and to send
a proposal to such a person.(Mishkaat-Vol.2, pg.267-narrated from Abu
Hurairah )

3.To
have the Nikah on Friday in a Masjid and to have Nikah in the month of
Shawwaal is Sunnat and preferable. (Mirqaat- Vol.6 pg.210 and 217)

4. To announce the Nikah. (Miskaat- Vol.2, pg.272)

5. It is also Sunnat to fix the amount of Mehr (dowry) according to one’s means. (Miskaat- Vol.2, pg.272)

6. On the first night when one is in seclusion with one’s wife, one should take hold of the forehead and recite this dua:

(Abu Dawood, Ibne Majah)
Trans: O Allah, I ask you for the good that is in her and the benefits
of her good habits and character. I seek your protection from the harms
of her evil habits and character.

7.When
intending to copulate with one’s wife, recite this dua: If he has
children then shaytaan will not be able to overpower them and will not
be able to harm them.
(Bukhari- Vol.2, pg. 776, Abu Dawood, Ibne Majah)

Trans: I commence this act in the name of Allah. O Allah, protect us
from Shaytaan and keep shaytaan away from that child that you will grant
us. The child that will be born after this dua has been recited will be
safeguarded from the harm of shaytaan.

Wednesday, January 30, 2013

It has become a common practice in many parts of the world for men to
stand and urinate. The presence of urinals in almost every male
bathroom has not only taught, but also encouraged people to stand up
while relieving themselves. What does Islam say about this behavior?First of all, we must remember that our ability to digest food and
drink is a great blessing from Allah. We would not be able to survive
without a digestive system. However, with every blessing comes a
responsibility. Since human waste is classified as impure, Islam teaches
us a few rules about how to relieve ourselves with dignity.

So what’s the problem?

There are many Islamic guidelines about how to use the restroom. We
will only focus on those that pertain to standing and urinating. This
common practice has led to the following unethical practices:1. Shamelessness. One bad habit that has resulted
from using of public urinals is the loss of personal modesty in the
restroom. It is very common to see two men using the bathroom while
having a conversation at the same time. Had they peeked over just a
little they would have be able to see one another’s private parts. This
is abhorrent. The Prophet ﷺ (Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him)
said,

“Allah detests it when two people relieve themselves uncovered and have a conversation.”1

The Prophet ﷺ would take so much care to seclude himself that
Al-Mughīrah ibn Shu’bah said, “I was travelling with the Prophet. When
he needed to relieve himself, he went far away from me.”22. Increase in impurity. How many urinals have you ever seen that provide wuḍū’
facilities, water fixtures or even toilet paper? Probably none. This
results in people leaving the restroom without an appropriate level of
cleanliness or washing their hands. The Prophet ﷺ said,

“When you go to the restroom, take three stones with you to clean yourself. That will suffice.”3

Salman al-Fārisī, the Companion from Persia, was told, “Your Prophet
has taught you everything, even how to use the bathroom.” He responded,
“That is right. He ﷺ told us not to…use our right hand when cleaning and
to not use less than three stones to clean ourselves after we finish.”4‘Ā’ishah (ra), the Prophet’s ﷺ wife, said to a group of women, “Tell
your husbands to clean themselves with water because I am embarrassed to
tell them. This is what the Prophet ﷺ used to do regularly.”5
Cleaning yourself, with either a solid substance or with water, is so
important in Islam that once when the Prophet ﷺ passed by a man’s grave
he told Ibn ‘Abbās (ra) that the deceased man is being tortured, but not
for a major sin: “He didn’t used to clean himself after urinating.”6

3. Disrespect for others. One of the common habits
we find in people who regularly use urinals is that they also stand up
while using a lavatory. This can result in an unsanitary seat covered
with urine and germs. Very few people care to clean the seat, let alone
the toilet area after leaving, so, the next person entering has to deal
with that disgusting mess. In this regard, the Prophet ﷺ said,“Beware of the cursed ones.” Some people asked, “Who are the cursed
ones?” He replied, “People who relieve themselves in public pathways or
in shaded areas.”7

Public pathways and shaded areas are two areas where people would be
offended from excrement and filth because they use them so often. The
same curse would apply to those who leave filth behind for the next
person. The curse, in this context, has two meanings: people are cursed
by the one who has to deal with the dirt they left behind and they are
cursed by Allah for their careless and disgusting habits.

Are there any exceptions?The Prophet ﷺ always sat down to relieve himself. This is proven by
‘Ā’ishah (ra), who was constantly in his presence. She said, “Don’t
believe anyone that tells you the Prophet ﷺ used to stand while
urinating. He always used to sit down.”8
The only person who ever contradicted her statement was Hudhayfah when
he said, “The Prophet ﷺ [while traveling] approached a garbage dump and
stood while urinating. Then, he called me to bring some water for him,
so I did, and he performed wuḍū’.”9
This is clearly an exception to the rule because the Prophet ﷺ was in a
very dirty place. Hudhayfa’s description of the place being a garbage
dump reveals to us the context and makes it clear that ‘Ā’isha’s (ra)
challenge was referring to people who claimed the Prophet ﷺ did it often
as a habit. Her challenge still stands today. When someone tries to
misquote the statement of Hudhayfah in order to prove that the Prophet ﷺ
used to stand and urinate just as people do today, we should correct
it.

What should a Muslim do?Muslims should try to combat this immorality in their own community
by encouraging good standards of hygiene. We live in societies which
claim to be clean and advanced, yet their toilets – the most basic of
sanitary developments – are among the filthiest in the world. Visit any
gas station, high school, theme park, etc. and experience what happens
to the restrooms when there is no full time janitor to clean up
afterwards.

People of the world still have much to learn from Islam’s frank
information on cleanliness. Purity has an environmental impact and is
strongly connected to worship; without a clean body, a Muslim cannot
pray. It is such an important principle in Islam that the Prophet ﷺ
said,